The Magic of Hogwarts
by blackpanther666
Summary: By some twist of fate, instead of meeting the Weasley family at the barrier to Platform 9 and 3/4, he instead meets the Greengrass family, with their twins, Astoria and Daphne. And, even worse, Harry is sorted in to Slytherin! Harry meets new people and even a werewolf that doesn't transform. How will Harry deal with the Slytherin students and his head of house, Professor Snape?
1. Chapter 1

**The Magic of Hogwarts**

The young man, called Harry Potter, lingered around at Kings Cross Station wondering about what Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry would be like when he got there. Harry Potter's parents had died when he was only one year old; they were killed by a dark wizard called Voldemort, who had then tried to kill Harry with the Killing Curse, but it had failed and reflected back onto the Dark Lord, stripping him of most of his humanity and leaving him little more than a wraith with no magic. Harry was rescued by a half-giant man called Hagrid and taken to his relatives, the Dursleys, who were horrible that treated him like a slave and had no great love for him; his entire childhood was spent scrubbing dishes, weeding the garden and other chores. Now, finally, he could get away from the Dursleys and never have to be their slave again. Hogwarts was to be his paradise – the place where he would be able to finally express his individuality and thrive in an environment that he had never believed to exist before.

'You okay there, love? You're pretty early for the train' a woman's voice came from behind him. Harry turned and saw that a beautiful blonde woman was standing there, two blonde children behind her and a darker haired man with his arms folded. Harry Potter, Boy-Who-Lived, was suddenly really shy, as he realised that he had seen limited social contact for the last 11 years and that these people were undoubtedly a magical family.

'Uh, hi. Are you talking about the train to go to Hogwarts?' Harry asked, then realising that this might sound strange if they weren't actually magical people.

'Of course. The Hogwarts Express. Are you excited to go to Hogwarts?' the lady inquired, while her family stood there looking at him. The younger girl was hiding behind her father's leg, but finally came out, also looking quite shy. Harry smiled shyly at her and she squealed, then ducked back behind her father.

'I'm glad to get away from my family. That's all. I hate them!' Harry said bitterly, not caring what these people thought.

'I had better introduce us. I am Melodia Greengrass. This is my husband, Felix and my daughters, Astoria and Daphne. Astoria and Daphne are both starting at Hogwarts this year. They are twins, but Astoria looks younger than Daphne.' Astoria slowly came back from behind her father, who nodded at Harry. Daphne looked slightly disinterested, but smiled anyway. Astoria suddenly popped up in front of him.

'Hi' she said brightly, her shyness suddenly forgotten. 'Uh, hey there, Astoria, my name is Harry. Nice to meet you.'

Melodia laughed throatily at her daughter's strange introduction. Felix Greengrass suddenly seemed really interested in his forehead, when Harry realised that he could probably see some of the scar, which he'd only had limited time to try and hide before the Dursleys had dragged him from his room. He patted his hair down quickly, but it was too late because Felix had obviously noticed this.

'By the beard of Merlin, you're Harry Potter!' Felix exclaimed loudly.

Harry suddenly felt his chest close up and he wanted to shrink into the pavement. Melodia seemed to notice this and scolded Felix for it. Harry noticed that Daphne suddenly seemed more interested now, looking him over like he was an animal on display. Astoria squealed again and then the hyperactive girl suddenly wrapped him up in a hug. Looking up at him, she smiled, then realised what she had done and turned very red and jumped back. Harry wasn't sure what to do.

'I'm sorry, Harry. We knew your parents. While we weren't friends, we know they were good people who lost their lives prematurely. If there is anything we can do, just let me know.'

Harry felt tears sting his eyes, but he held them back. He suddenly thought about something that had been bothering him, since he had arrived at Kings Cross. 'Uh, how do you get to the platform where the train comes from?'

Daphne spoke up for the first time since he had come across the Greengrasses. 'You mean, you weren't even told how to access the platform? Do you even know any magic, or much about the wizarding world?' She seemed slightly annoyed, though Harry couldn't work out why.

'Uh, I didn't know magic existed until about two weeks ago. I've been living with my non-magical relatives' Harry said dejectedly. Would other people ask him stuff like that at Hogwarts? Would they bully him like they did at school? Would no-one like him? These questions seemed to revolve around in his head, along with multiple others, further magnifying his depressed attitude.

Melodia must have noticed this, because she frowned at Daphne, before directing her next comment at her daughter. 'That's enough, Daphne! Mind your manners.'

Daphne shrugged nonchalantly. 'I was just asking. It seems like they've kind of left him in the dark, don't you think?' Melodia frowned again.

'My daughter doesn't mean anything by it, Harry. Just ignore her. We'll show you how to access Platform Nine and Three Quarters, if you would like. Why don't you go first, dear?' she said to Felix suggestively. Felix nodded, then grabbed the trolley and walked towards the barrier. It appeared as though he was going to walk into the barrier, but then, when he should have hit it, he disappeared in front of Harry's eyes. It was then he understood why couldn't find Platform Nine and Three Quarters, because it was magic that was used to hide it; of course it was, Harry mentally kicked himself, then looked at Melodia.

'I'll have a go at it, then' Harry said with determination in his voice.

'Well, make sure you focus, and probably run at it. Well, see you on the other side, Harry.'

Harry decided to take her advice, thinking it was probably a smart idea. Meeting the Greengrass family had been an opportunity that Harry was glad he hadn't passed up; it had been illuminating for two points. Harry was sick of being pushed around, like at the Dursley's, and had taken Daphne's answer in fully, noting that people at Hogwarts might not like him, or he would be harassed by people, since he was clearly famous. It was annoying. He would show the people at Hogwarts that he was no trifling matter. The other thing was learning about what magic could do, as Mrs Greengrass had shown him. He would learn about it kinds of magic. He just hoped that he was good enough to master many spells, even dark ones, if necessary. Harry ran at the barrier with his trolley, thinking about how ignorant of magic he had been before he came to King's Cross station. Harry Potter disappeared into a barrier.

Harry was stunned when he came out the other side, into a sunny station, with numerous people bustling about and saying goodbye to their little dears; Harry noticed several red-haired people, including a moody looking kid, with a black mark on his nose. It seemed that a couple of the red-hairs, probably his brothers, referred to him as 'Ickle Ronniekins'. It seemed to be a fitting nickname, because he looked like he was somewhat slow in the mental department. Harry looked at Astoria, who had just popped up next to him, then looked at the train. 'You wanna sit with me, Astoria?' he asked her begrudgingly.

'Yeah, sure, Harry.'

She was then wrapped up in a hug by Mrs Greengrass, who looked like she always smothered her daughter. Daphne looked at him uninterestedly, then was grabbed by her mother and hugged a tad less fiercely. She glanced at Harry once more, then said goodbye to her father and took her suitcase onto the train. Astoria beckoned to Harry, who waved to Mr and Mrs Greengrass, then pulled his suitcase along.

When they got onto the train, they came to an open corridor with compartments on either side. Astoria grabbed his hand, smiling at him, then dragged him in to one of the empty ones. They sat down across from each other, after Astoria had realised that she was holding his hand and blushed deeply, stammered a sorry, then looked down at the floor for a minute, until he asked her about magic, to which she then started to tell him about magic. After another five minutes, the door opened and a pale-skinned kid with blonde hair looked in.

'Well, you must be Harry Potter. The one who defeated the Dark Lord. I am Draco Malfoy. Don't worry, I won't annoy you with questions about it. I extend my friendship towards you, since you are the Chosen One. What do you say, Potter?' the boy said, somewhat imperiously.

'Hi. Pleased to meet you, Draco Malfoy' Harry replied back. This kid seemed kind of like an egomaniac, but he said he wouldn't annoy Harry, so he couldn't be too bad, right? He noticed that Astoria looked at Malfoy suspiciously.

'Malfoy' she said with disgust in her voice. Malfoy eyed her much the same, only slight curiosity in his eyes to replace the dislike she displayed towards him. Harry figured she didn't like this kid much, so he would use this wisdom to be wary of Malfoy.

'Greengrass. You're a disgrace. I'm surprised Potter there can even stand to be in your presence.' He looked at Harry. 'I would be wary of the Greengrass family, if I were you, Potter. They are a pathetic family, who chose to spurn the Dark Lord's offers. The other sister is even worse, such a cold hearted piece of filth.'

'How dare you refer to my sister that way! You'd better get out of here before I hex you Malfoy, you nasty scum!' Astoria cried furiously. Malfoy wisely ducked out of the compartment, then stormed off down the corridor, his two goons in tow.

Astoria looked at Harry. 'Don't worry about him. You don't want to be friends with that scum, Harry. His father was a Death Eater, one of the Dark Lord's most important henchman. He's a guaranteed Slytherin. What about you, Harry?'

'I don't know what you mean. What is a Slytherin?' Harry asked.

'Oh, sorry. I guess you don't know. Well, there are four houses that you can get put in at Hogwarts. Slytherin is one of them. I'll probably end up there, too. My father was in Slytherin. Although, I wish Malfoy wasn't going to be in Slytherin!'

'What about the other houses?' Harry ignored her comment about Malfoy. He didn't really care, anyway. Draco Malfoy and his father could potentially be allies, if Harry ever needed them.

'Well, there's Gryffindor, Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff. Gryffindor is for the brave and reckless. Hufflepuff rewards loyalty and friendship and Ravenclaws value knowledge and learning. Slytherin is for those who are sneaky and cunning. The snake is our symbol. Those are how my father told me about the houses of Hogwarts. I think I agree with most of it, though Malfoy is probably a poor example.'

Harry, once again, ignored the barb directed at Malfoy. He was about to say something, but the whistle of the train interrupted him. As the whistle sounded, the door flew open again and the red-haired boy, with the black mark on his nose, burst in. He realised who he was looking at, since Harry had no such luck convincing his too-short hair to cover the damned scar.

'Wow! You're Harry Potter. You defeated the Dark Lord! How did you do it? Did he really die that night? You must miss your parents, huh.'

This kid talked way too much and it was beginning to annoy Harry. 'Who are you?' he replied back, rudely.

'Ron Weasley. Pleased to meet you, Harry. This train sure is cool, huh. This is the first time I have been on it, though' Ron blathered on about the train.

'Obviously.'

Harry's cold tone suddenly seemed to stop Ron in his tracks and he blinked, confused at Harry's reaction. Astoria looked at Ron, smirked, then looked away. Ron gulped, realising that Harry didn't seem to like him. In fact, Harry had despised this boy since he saw him at the Platform. He just looked like a moron and Harry had decided.

'Well, I'll go find another compartment' Ron Weasley announced, then stepped back, turned around and walked back out of the door, closing it behind him.

'Those Weasleys can be quite annoying. Especially that particular one. I think the twins are okay, though. They seem to like playing pranks on people, or so I've heard.'

'Hey, Astoria. Tell me more about Slytherin. I think I'm interested in that.'

Meanwhile, another boy was sitting in a compartment with a disgruntled looking redhead. William ignored him, as he looked like a dunce. The other occupant was a nerdy looking girl, who had very bushy hair and seemed to be shy, as had yet to try and speak to him like the other boy. The compartment door opened and a pudgy boy walked in, looking very nervous and upset about something.

'Have any of you seen a toad?' the boy asked nervously.

William shook his head, deciding that the newcomer seemed to be very unconfident in himself. He thought that maybe he would even befriend the boy.

'I haven't seen a toad, sorry' William expanded on his head-shake. The boy looked dejected and made to go walk out of the compartment.

'Good luck' the girl said softly, biting her lip. The pudgy boy nodded, then walked out.

The girl looked at him expectantly, probably wondering who he was, or why he'd been nice to the boy who lost his toad. William stared back, deciding what to do. He finally spoke. 'What's your name? I'm William. William Robb.'

The girl seemed to fish for an answer, then smiled to herself. 'I'm Hermione Granger. Pleased to meet you, William.'

William nodded and seemed to space out again, obviously thinking to himself. This girl seemed interesting enough; not necessarily his first choice in a friend, but she seemed relatively intelligent and sure enough of herself. Although she hadn't said much to him, nor seemed to notice the strange feeling she should have felt when looking at him. Although no-one at Hogwarts knew anything yet, William was a werewolf. He was not a full werewolf, though; when he had been bitten, something had gone wrong and William had fought off some of the 'turning'. By rights, he was probably one of the most powerful wizards at Hogwarts, capable of firing off spells and tapping into his own lycanthropy, which seemed to make him somewhat stronger, faster, accentuated his native senses and made him more resistant to spells. He also didn't 'transform' during the full moon, but his powers were magnified by the presence of the moon, making him more powerful.

William occasionally talked to Hermione during the rest of the trip, about Hogwarts houses, spells, history and so on. He realised that Hermione was incredibly smart and would grow up to be a talented witch. He also found out that she was muggle-born, a fact he didn't really care about, looking at his position as a werewolf – something that had kept him on the run for years, since he had been bitten. They also bought some snacks from the trolley, which had been nice, though he religiously steered away from cockroach clusters and Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans, remembering the acid flavoured one he had tried and it had burned through his tongue, eliciting a short hospital visit.

Harry discovered that he got along quite well with Astoria, who was a nice girl and had a great personality, though she was quite hyper-active, but shy at the same time. She explained about Slytherin and the other houses, pointing out that Slytherins were not so bad and he shouldn't listen to what Hagrid said about them. She also pointed out that Gryffindor also had its not-so-great qualities, a fact Harry found interesting, considering his parents had supposedly been good, little Gryffindors. The fact of the matter was, no matter what house you were from, if you were of the same species as the rest of that house, then things would be quite favourable towards your particular talents; any Slytherin could be cunning and smart, but some could misrepresent the whole house, if left unattended. Communication and inner-house activities could potentially overcome the whole barrier, assuming that the houses would get along. Harry was quite introspective about the whole thing; Astoria made it sound like it was quite biased in many ways and that the wizarding world had many things that could be improved upon. Harry liked the sound of that and had made a mental note to remember that and apply it to his own destiny; if Harry could destroy the Dark Lord, the one that taken his parents from him, then he would certainly be more content and happy with the wizarding world, a place where he could thrive and not strive to inhabit cupboards underneath certain sets of stairs. Harry would be essentially free. Unbeknownst by most, Harry was already aware of some things known to the magical world, but not that of the muggle world. He had already tried to show the image of someone who was ignorant to many of the goings on of the magical world; Harry was certain that Weasley, Malfoy, Fluff-Hair and some of the others were under the impression that Harry had no idea about what went on within the Wizengamot and Ministry of Magic.

'Okay, Harry. I'm going to go change into my robes. You should do the same thing.'

'Yeah, sure' Harry replied, wondering how his robes would fit him. He remembered Madam Malkin's store, where he had first met Malfoy; the poncy git had introduced himself to Harry, more arrogantly and egotistically than anyone he could remember, which was a stark comparison considering his life with the Dursleys and their associates. Another reason why he didn't really think he would take Malfoy's friendship offering, but perhaps he would stay polite and keep him as a potential ally.

Harry changed into his robes while Astoria was gone, then blushed as he realised that Daphne had slipped into the department as he was finishing dressing. She smirked at him and sat there with her arms folded. Harry suddenly realised how pretty she was and that she was almost the same in looks as Astoria.

'Hi...' Harry started to say, but was interrupted by Astoria bursting in to the compartment. She looked at Harry first, then Daphne, as if deciding what to say and how to interpret what was going on.

'What's going on guys?' she asked curiously.

Daphne snorted, then burst into laughter, which seemed odd given her original behaviour, though Harry decided that he kind of liked it. 'I almost walked in on Potter changing.'

Astoria giggled and then both girls laughed even harder when Harry blushed again.

'Alright, alright... it's not _that_ funny' Harry snapped.

They ignored him, to his annoyance, and Astoria looked out the window. 'It looks like we're almost here, I think. I can't wait to see what Hogwarts is like.'

The train stopped finally, after a long ride and the three of them opened the compartment door and walked down to the doors, where many other students had already begun to congregate. Harry noticed the bushy-haired girl he had seen earlier, as well as the boy with the toad and 'Ickle Ronniekins'. In addition, he noticed that the bushy-haired girl was standing with a tall boy, but there was something about him that Harry couldn't quite place; yes, indeed, the boy gave off quite a strange aura and had quite unusual eyes.

'What are you staring at, Harry? You're not perving at girls are you?' Daphne smirked at him.

Still semi-lost in his daydream, Harry ignored her and tried to ponder what the feeling was, but then the boy moved and the feeling went away. 'None of your business. Leave me alone.'

Daphne huffed at him and walked ahead, while Astoria glanced between the two with obvious worry on her face. It looked like the relationship between Harry and Daphne would be an interesting one; Astoria could already foresee plenty of bickering. Astoria nudged Harry, who grunted, and they got off the train. They walked along trying to keep up with Daphne, then saw that there were multiple carriages waiting for them, so they boarded one and waited for Daphne.

Daphne obviously had boarded another carriage and they finally arrived at the castle. From where the train stopped, they had already seen how massive the castle really was, but the gates of Hogwarts were simply magnificent – then the door to the castle was opened by the half-giant Hagrid and they walked inside. After walking down a corridor, they both gasped in shock as they entered a massive hall, with stars and clouds in the roof, which was higher than anything they had ever seen before. It was truly amazing. They were seated by an old witch, who had a no nonsense look to her.

'I am the deputy headmistress, Professor McGonagall and the head of Gryffindor house. We will now sort you all into houses.' The professor grabbed a dirty bowler hat and put it on the table. It suddenly burst into life and began singing:

" _Oh you may not think I'm pretty,_  
 _But don't judge on what you see,_  
 _I'll eat myself if you can find_  
 _A smarter hat than me._

 _You can keep your bowlers black  
Your top hats sleek and tall,  
For I'm the Hogwarts Sorting Hat_  
 _And I can cap them all._

 _There's nothing hidden in your head_  
 _The Sorting Hat can't see,_  
 _So try me on and I will tell you_  
 _Where you ought to be._

 _You might belong in Gryffindor,_  
 _Where dwell the brave at heart,_  
 _Their daring, nerve, and chivalry_  
 _Set Gryffindors apart;_

 _You might belong in Hufflepuff,  
Where they are just and loyal,_  
 _Those patient Hufflepuffs are true_  
 _And unafraid of toil;_

 _Or yet in wise old Ravenclaw,  
if you've a ready mind,_  
 _Where those of wit and learning,_  
 _Will always find their kind;_

 _Or perhaps in Slytherin  
You'll make your real friends,_  
 _Those cunning folks use any means_  
 _To achieve their ends._

 _So put me on! Don't be afraid!_  
 _And don't get in a flap!_  
 _You're in safe hands (though I have none)_  
 _For I'm a Thinking Cap!"_

Harry stared in bewildered amazement at the moving, singing hat, deciding that the wizarding world was an entirely strange place. Daphne and Astoria didn't looked particularly amazed, though, and Harry figured that it was because he had grown up in the muggle world, 'muggle' being a word that he still kind of struggled with... such a queer word.

'Uh, guys, what the heck is that thing?' Harry questioned them, though it probably seemed more like an interrogation.

'It's the sorting hat. We'll tell you about it, okay?' Astoria whispered back, then turned back to the sorting.

'We will now sort you all into houses, if you please. Be quiet, you two!' McGonagall directed to two students that were talking to each other.

'Abbot, Hannah.' A blond girl, that was quite pretty, slowly made her way up to where the sorting hat was placed. 'Put it on please, dear' McGonagall said and Hannah looked at the hat, as if trying to decide if it was dangerous or not, then finally put it on.

After a few seconds, the hat shouted 'Hufflepuff!' and Hannah placed the hat back, then looked at McGonagall, as though she were silently asking what to do next.

'Very good, dear, now please join the Hufflepuff table.'

Hannah walked over the to the Hufflepuff table and found a free seat, then sat down. The Hufflepuff students were clapping, as well as the Ravenclaw and Gryffindor students, though Harry noticed that the Slytherins were not clapping at all, but looking at the girl with calculating looks.

'Ackerly, Stewart.' A brown-haired boy was next and after placing the hat on his head, he was then added to the Ravenclaw house. Again, the Slytherin students didn't clap along with the rest, but narrowed their eyes. He could feel some of them staring at him, too, though he wasn't sure if it was out of malice, or just because they were curious about the Boy Who Lived.

A few more students were added to various houses and Harry simply stared curiously at each and every sorting, still deciding if he had a choice on where he would end up and what he would choose if he was given that option.

'Goyle, Gregory.' A big kid was added to the Slytherin community and they all seemed to be happy to have him there, though they didn't clap, just the same as when a Crabbe, Vincent was added to Slytherin.

'Granger, Hermione.' The bushy-haired girl, from the train, was next and walked up to the hat. She didn't seem either confident, nor nervous. She put the hat on and after about half a minute the hat screamed 'Ravenclaw!'

'Greengrass, Astoria.' Harry smiled softly at Astoria, who suddenly looked extremely nervous. Daphne pushed her slightly and Astoria walked up to the hat, put it on and after only a couple of seconds, she was added to Slytherin.

'Greengrass, Daphne.' The process was repeated this time, though Daphne was quite confident walking up to the hat and, if anything, it seemed to decide on her fate, even quicker than Astoria.

Finally, a few of Slytherins clapped and seemed to actually to be happier than the previous three students that joined their house. Harry smiled over at them, as they sat down, and clapped as hard as he could. He was probably being noticeable, but he didn't really care.

'Malfoy, Draco.' Harry watched as the blond-haired boy from earlier walked up to put the hat on. Harry figured he would be added to the Slytherin house, so he paid fairly little attention, as he continued to ponder his choice, or lack of. Indeed, Malfoy joined the Slytherins, as quite a few of them clapped for him.

Another couple of students were added to houses and then, finally, McGonagall called his name.

'Potter, Harry.' The whole hall seemed to turn to stare at him, as he slowly walked nervously up to the hat. McGonagall gave him a small smile and he picked the hat up and put it on his head. To his shock, a voice suddenly burst into his head.

' _You could be great, you know. Cunning, intelligence, loyalty and a bravery that seem to qualify for each of the four houses, but, where to put you? Slytherin would be good for you, Gryffindor, too, which is where I placed your parents, you know._ '

Harry silently hoped that he could join his friends in Slytherin, besides, he was feeling like a house like that would potentially be good for him.

' _I see. You have the right qualities that would suit Slytherin. In that case, better be_ Slytherin!' the hat yelled loudly. Harry threw the hat off and looked around, stunned. He could barely hear any claps, from anywhere in the hall, except for a couple in Gryffindor and Slytherin. In fact, it seemed as though most people stunned to see _the_ Harry Potter sorted into Slytherin. He clambered over to the Slytherin table and was pleased to see that Daphne and Astoria had chosen seats with one available next to Astoria, as though they had excepted him to be sorted into Slytherin.

'Robb, William.' Harry looked up at the boy, recognising him as the one he got a strange feeling from before. The boy was different to the rest, walking up to the hat, as though it was the easiest thing in the world, as though there was absolutely nothing to be nervous. It was beyond simply confident, it was more like his life hard been hard on him and this was genuinely easier to go through. Harry wondered about him, as the boy was sorted into Ravenclaw, along with the bushy-haired girl, or Bushy Hair, as Harry might refer to her as.

'Weasley, Ronald.' The lanky red-head gulped loudly and walked nervously up to the hat, adjusted it onto his head and after a short time was introduced into the house of Gryffindor. Harry almost smirked at the annoying kid, but decided he wasn't worth the time. Suddenly Harry felt like eyes were watching him, which he looked in the direction the feeling was hinting at and realised a teacher with long, lank black hair was visibly glaring at him, then he felt a sharp pain from his scar. He quickly clutched his forehead at the abrupt pain, while Astoria glanced at him, worried.

'What's wrong, Harry?' she asked, concern noticeable in her kind eyes.

'My scar... why did it hurt?' by then the pain had all but gone and the teacher had already quit staring and was now talking to a man in a turban. Daphne shot a look at him, but didn't say anything.

'Your scar hurt? I don't really know, Harry. I'm sure you could probably ask a teacher, but I'm not sure whether any of them would really something like that.'

Daphne smirked at him. 'You could always ask the Dark Lord, Potter. Assuming if even he knew anything about it.'

'Daphne! Don't be rude. You know that's a silly thing to say!'

'I was only joking, Asty. Obviously that's impossible, anyway. You know he supposedly defeated the Dark Lord as a baby' Daphne said, somewhat apologetically, as she shot a glance at Harry to see what his reaction was. Minuscule, as it turned out.

'Can you tell me more about that? I grew up with muggles, so I don't really know anything about my heritage, besides what Hagrid told me.'

A sudden interruption from the head table cut off whatever reply that was coming his way, as the old man with long, silver hair, and a beard to match, tapped something and began speaking.

'Welcome to Hogwarts, my dear students. I'll just say a few words before wet our throats and fill our ever-growling stomachs. Nitwit, oddment, blubber, tweak.'

Harry stared at him, confused at the words, as well as at the speaker of them; to say the man was quite mad was probably an understatement.

'Uh, what?' Harry directed at his two new friends.

Daphne snorted loudly. 'Everybody always says how great Dumbledore is, but nobody ever seems to point out that he's quite mad underneath it all. Still, he defeated the dark wizard Grindelwald and put up a fight against He Who Must Not Be Named. He also happens to be the Supreme Mugwump of the Wizengamot.'

Astoria shot her a pained look of exasperation. 'Daphs, Harry probably has absolutely no idea of half of what you just said. Don't worry, Harry, we'll explain as much to you as we can.'

'Thanks, Astoria. I appreciate it.'

Food began to appear on the tables, including such things like roast chicken, pork and other meats. Tons and tons of roasted vegetables, as well as boiled or steamed ones, massive gravy boats and some kind of strange looking pitchers of an orange liquid that Harry didn't recognise. It was a supreme looking feast and Harry didn't even think twice before over-loading his plate with pretty much everything. He hadn't realised until after the sorting, but he was suddenly extremely hungry after being nervous for so long.

'Hey, Potter. So, you got sorted into Slytherin, huh? Did you think about what I said earlier?' the speaker was Malfoy, who had left his seat and had walked over quite stealthily.

'Malfoy. I did think about it, actually. You know, I'm sure we could work something out, but I haven't really thought much more than that, maybe just acquaintances of a sort, perhaps allies in a house, where perhaps not all would have been very happy to see me come into this house.'

'Well, you're certainly not stupid, Potter. If you can keep up that kind of attitude, then perhaps you'll be able to deal with Professor Snape. Oh well, I'll talk to you later, I suppose.' Then Malfoy walked back to his seat, seemingly satisfied with Harry's answer.

'You're not really thinking of becoming _friends_ with that, are you, Potter?' Daphne asked, almost in an annoyed tone.

'As I said, maybe allies. I don't know, but I get the feeling that he'd be a huge pain in my ass if I got on the wrong side of him. So, instead, we'll probably just use each other, or maybe we'll even become friends. Who knows?'

Daphne snorted again. 'At least you're actually using your brain, I suppose. But, he's pretty much the human equivalent of a slug. Well, you've been warned, Malfoy isn't a particularly pleasant person, but you can figure that out for yourself.'

'I agree, Harry. Malfoy is _not_ a nice person to be around, so don't expect either of us to be seen anywhere near him. If you hang out with him, it'll be by yourself, especially if he has those two cronies of his hanging around with him.'

'Okay, okay. I get how you feel about him, so it's not like I'd even expect you to, I'm just not going to spurn any offers of friendship, or being allies with someone. Life is probably going to become relatively difficult for me now, considering half these morons probably think I defeated their dark lord, assuming they were allied with him. Don't worry, you guys are really my only friends in the world, I won't give that up for anything.'

Even Daphne seemed surprised, but didn't say anything. Astoria squealed in delight and started tugging his arm affectionately. Harry sighed. 'Let's eat, guys. I'm starving and I haven't had anything this good in, like, ever.'

For the rest of the feast, the trio simply made small talk and Harry asked about who Snape was, since Malfoy had mentioned him to Harry as a person he might have to 'deal with', which made it sound as though he'd be unpleasant or be a problem in general. It was explained that 'Professor' Snape, something Daphne had hinted on to make sure he always remembered to address Snape that way, was actually the potions master and known to be an irritable and impatient person. When the feast ended, the first years were directed to each houses' prefects and shown the way up to the common rooms and dormitories.

Up numerous flights of stairs, around countless bends, hundreds of moving pictures and the occasional armored statue and Harry was completely and utterly lost. It didn't look as though any of the other first years were any better off than Harry, either. Harry sensed that the coming weeks would be a trial just getting to and from classes, not to mention actually trying to find the way outside, or to the library that they undoubtedly had (something Harry had decided he would do is read as much as he could and try and learn as much as he could, especially magic).

'Hey, Astoria, they have a library, don't they?' he whispered to her.

Astoria giggled embarrassingly, obviously amused by this question. Apparently it was obvious that it did have a library. 'Of course it does, Harry. It's a school.' Daphne snorted at Harry's question, but didn't feel the need to add anything to what Astoria had said.

'This is the portrait of the Fat Lady. The password to the common room is _blood traitor_. Obviously, you will refrain from telling that password to anyone from another house. Only Slytherins shall know the password to the Slytherin common room.'


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer:** I don't any of the characters, except for whichever I come up with at the time. Everything else is owned by J. , not me.

 **Chapter Two**

The first day of classes was interesting, as far as Harry was concerned, though the potions class was quite unpleasant and he figured out why Malfoy mentioned Professor Snape in the manner that he did – it was because Snape seemed to have a vendetta against anyone called Harry Potter, or apparently a Neville Longbottom. Harry was still vividly remembering it, even now.

' _Ah, Potter. Our new... celebrity. I certainly hope that you have a brain to match. You wouldn't want to become the laughing stock of the Slytherin house, would you, Potter?!'_

 _Harry was stunned. 'Ah, no, sir.'_

 _'Good. Then perhaps you can tell me what a bezoar is.'_

 _Harry struggled to recall what little he had learned from Astoria and Daphne, but finally remembered what it was. 'If I remember correctly, it is a stone taken from the stomach of a goat and it can act as an antidote to most poisons.'_

 _Snape smirked nastily. 'Rudimentary, at best, but at least you can take some credit for actually knowing something, Potter. Take 5 points for Slytherin.'_

 _Then Snape rounded on another boy from Gryffindor, whom the Slytherins were sharing potions class with. 'Longbottom, explain to me the effects of wormwood.'_

 _'I-I don't know, sir.'_

 _'Pathetic. I suppose you Gryffindors think you're too good to study? Well?' Snape said dangerously._

 _Neville gulped visibly. 'No, sir.'_

 _'20 points from Gryffindor for being a dunce.'_

 _Ickle Ronniekins seemed on the verge of a violent outburst, but wasn't quite stupid enough to actually say anything, while the rest of the Gryffindors looked shocked at the way Snape was treating their house. However, the Slytherins were sniggering and even Harry had to see the amusing side of it, barring the fact that he'd been almost in the same situation as Longbottom._

 _'That Longbottom is a bit of an idiot. He won't have a very fun year with Professor Snape' Daphne grinned evilly. Harry had to admit that she had a point. 'But, the professor doesn't seem to like you very much, Potter. I wonder why.'_

At this very moment, coincidentally, Harry was trying to work out why that damned Snape didn't like him. Harry first thought that perhaps Snape just didn't like famous people, thinking they were pretentious, or something along those lines; however, on second thought, perhaps he had known Harry's parents. Maybe something had happened between them. Of course, Harry had absolutely no idea about much involving his parents and he didn't feel like there was any point in asking Astoria, or Daphne about it, so he resolved to figure it out later.

Currently, he was sitting in the library with the two Greengrasses, after the first day of lessons and was reading, while also attempting to start the homework that they had been given. It wasn't so bad, though – they had three days to complete a two inch essay on antidotes for deadly poisons, excluding the bezoar and to practice trying to turn a needle into a nail. Surprisingly, they had not gotten any homework from charms, which suited Harry just fine.

'Why do you reckon we didn't get any homework from charms?' Harry asked his two friends.

'I have no idea, Potter. Who cares? The main thing is that we didn't get any, right? Daphne replied.

Astoria smiled, having already become used to seeing the two bickering and obviously amused at how quickly Daphne and Harry had also fallen into that habit. It was quite refreshing, considering that most of Slytherin house had not made any secrets that they did not like Harry Potter. It wasn't surprising, though, and Harry had seemed to accept it as though he had already expected it, nor was particularly bothered by it. Astoria thought that maybe he already knew what it was like to have no one to be beside him, or help him when he needed it; as she recalled, the night before, he had said that her and Daphne were his only two friends in the world. And what about his relatives? By what Harry had said, it sounded as though they hadn't told him about magic, or his parents. The question was, what kind of relatives would leave him in the dark over such important details like that? No, there was something going there, but she would give Harry time to talk about it, before attempting to find out for herself.

'Flitwick is pretty nice, though. I like him.'

Harry and Daphne grinned at Astoria. It was exactly the kind of thing she'd say, something Harry had already learned; she was very exuberant and trusting of others, liking most people almost instantly, once she got past her 'shy first minute'.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the library, William Robb and his new friends were currently studying, after having first classes today and a lot of homework to go with them. As it turned out, while Hermione was very bossy, as William had suspected, she was a highly intelligent girl and the library seemed to be her favorite place in the world. Beside her bushy-brown hair, Hermione was quite pretty. His other new friends were Neville Longbottom, who was in Gryffindor and Luna Lovegood, who was a blonde girl, with odd views of the magical world and many of the creatures that inhabited it. Because of her strange views, airy-fairy personality and the look that made her seem like she was always off in a different world, Luna had been ridiculed by some students already, even though she was really a very nice girl. However, one day she would undoubtedly become the pride of the Ravenclaw house, at least, as far as what William was concerned.

William peered peripherally around the library, noting that there weren't actually many people in there and was somewhat concerned about the lack of attention for the place. To him, the library was a silent sanctuary, a place where you could learn or read anything, with no-one in the world to bother you. However, that was only his secondary, non-primal concern. Underneath it all, William was concerned about any students feeling his aura, or otherwise feeling uncomfortable around him and hoped, sincerely, that was not the reason why the library was so quiet. Of course, on the other hand, everyone had only just started school again, so one could assume that they were unequipped for utilising the library at this current point.

'William. Are you okay?" Neville asked with concern. To someone like Neville, it shouldn't seem so concerning, yet William was obviously spacing out far more than what he usually would around groups of people. Friends. Apparently. He had never enjoyed the privilege of friends before. Could he possibly understand them?

'Yeah, Neville, I'm fine. Sorry, I'm just spacing out over the lack of students in the library. To be perfectly honest, I feel like it should be the most important place in Hogwarts. And yet, there's really no-one here at all. Quite strange, isn't it?'

Hermione sniggered, rather quietly. 'Oh, William, it seems that we must be the same breed. No, you're quite right, though – there are certainly a lack of students in this library. I don't quite understand it. Libraries are most fun, after all.'

Neville looked at her with a queer look on his face. 'But, Hermione, people generally don't like coming here because of...' then his voice changed to a whisper 'of Madam Pince...'

'Are you sure, Neville?'

Neville struggled to answer, but then he suddenly spoke louder. 'That's just what I heard the older students talking about. I guess the new ones are just unwilling to come here. Honestly, I don't know. But, I don't think it's strange, maybe just normal, considering how students are.'

'You know, Neville, you're actually quite intelligent. I thought you were a bit more stupid than what you really are, given the whole toad incident, but, Trevor aside, you actually have brains. I'm glad we met. I really am.'

Neville gawked at William. 'Really?!'

'Yeah, now let's continue reading. This book is interesting.'

Meanwhile, Astoria and Harry decided to go check out the library. Daphne had gone off to meet some friends, but the other were bored and unwilling to part company just yet. The library was up a few flights of stairs, at least, but Astoria seemed to know where she was going, so she led the way, until they almost ran into a bunch of Gryffindor first-years.

'Oh, look, it's Harry Potter and Miss Slytherin... I guess they're going off for their first snog somewhere.' This came from the red-haired Ron Weasley, who Harry had already suspected for lack-of-brains.

'Sorry, Weasley, I just couldn't stand all that red hair. I guess some people just have color, and, people intolerances, huh?' Harry fired back, already becoming annoyed.

'What was that, Potter?! You wanna fight?' Weasley snarled back at him.

'Please. If I wanted to fight a Neanderthal, I would have requested it from someone a bit more respectable and with brains larger than that of a platypus.'

Weasley roared in displeasure and pulled out his wand. 'You better watch it, you dirty Slytherin! I'll cast the bat-bogey curse on you, I will!'

Before the spell could even register, Professor Snape had appeared. '30 points from Gryffindor. If I ever see that wand pulled out again, Weasley, I will have you doing detentions for a whole month, understand?!'

Weasley swallowed and glared at Snape. 'I was just doing a demonstration for the Slytherins, sir.'

'And what would they need your instruction for, Weasley? I wasn't aware that instruction was required from a dunce. Or maybe you just wanted to show off the skills you don't actually possess... pathetic boy, run along, or it will become more than 30 points' Snape's tone was dangerous, yet dripping with sarcasm.

Weasley's face twisted in rage, but he turned around and stalked off, his posse following closely behind. Professor Snape pulled Harry away from Astoria and looked at him with that typical sneer on his face.

'Potter' Snape spoke with no emotion.

'Yes, sir?' Harry replied, unsure of what was to come.

'I'm surprised at how well you handled yourself. Considering the answer you gave me at Potions, I certainly expected less of you. However, don't get arrogant... I have no time for arrogance. You may have become a Slytherin, but I expect to see the traits that you were chosen for. Don't disappoint me.'

'I won't, sir.'

Snape paused, then started off on a different tirade. 'I expect you to follow Slytherins' rules. I expect you to not dishonour this house. If you manage that, by some miracle, then we may see eye-to-eye. Otherwise, I will make your life a living hell. Are we clear?'

'Yes, sir.'

Harry walked away, leaving Snape thinking to himself about the exchange he just witnessed from Potter. The boy was clearly a lot more intelligent than what he would have ever thought, especially considering half of the genes he had inherited, or rather, the person he had inherited the genes from. But Potter would become quite the prodigy if he headed in the right direction, especially avoiding fights with Gryffindors, most definitely that Weasley blood-traitor.

'What did professor Snape say, Harry?' Astoria asked him curiously.

'Oh, nothing of importance. He just mentioned about showing my Slytherin traits and blah-blah-blah. I wouldn't worry about it.'

'Oh, okay. Shall we go and eat lunch now, or do you want to go to the library, or something?'

Harry shrugged, he had no idea whether he wanted to eat, go read a book, or simply go outside. He decided on going outside. 'I kind of feel like going outside and maybe looking at the lake, perhaps. I haven't been there yet. Could be interesting.'

'Sure, lets go!'

They headed down several flights of stairs, until they were in the Great Hall, then Astoria went to grabbed some sandwiches from the table, all the while yanking Daphne by the arm and pulling her along with them. They ended up eating sandwiches by the lake, as Astoria had ended up bringing more than enough for herself and enough for Harry and Daphne, too. All in all, it was well worthwhile – despite being relatively cold, it was mostly sunny, with a few puffy, white clouds drifting overhead.

'Did you see what Weasley did, Daph?' Astoria asked her sister, a smirk on her face.

'No, you guys disappeared right after potions. I had to stay back and talk to Snape. What happened?'

'Well, he tried picking a fight with Harry and, as he was about to pull out his wand, Professor Snape showed up and was absolutely livid. They lost Gryffindor 30 points.' Astoria giggled with hilarity at the end.

'Serves that imbecile right. That's what you get when you're a stupid Gryffindor, with no brains and all mouth. I can imagine Snape will pick on him as much as Longbottom.'

Note: Hey, guys, I apologise for such a massive wait from the first chapter. I started it, posted it, then realised that work was going to be busy to the point of needing to wait this one out for a while. Chapter isn't particularly interesting, nor is it very long, but I'm currently writing several things at the moment and wanted to at least update. The next chapter will be more interesting. Anyway, thank you to everyone who reviewed or favorited this story. I appreciate it. Any more reviews will be welcomed. Thanks!


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